Showers appears to be early leader in QB battle

COLLEGE STATION – Texas A&M’s kickoff is more than four months away, but your early leader at quarterback is sophomore Jameill Showers. He looked the most poised and showed off the best arm of the foursome on Saturday during an open scrimmage at Kyle Field.

The team drilled for about an hour and a half before about 4,000 fans, before the Aggie Youth Experience started for about 500 kids on the field with the players.

While first-year coach Kevin Sumlin said he was going to have study the video to offer detailed analysis on the quarterbacks – including Showers’ primary competition Johnny Manziel – Sumlin pointed to one general thing he hopes to improve as spring practice wears on.

“I wasn’t real happy with the tempo today,” Sumlin said. “It can be faster, and guys have got to understand that.”

Sumlin has played loud music (of all variety) during spring drills, and it was rockin’ at Kyle during stretches and warm ups. But Sumlin chose to kill the music during the scrimmage – prompting a curious reaction from the players.

“If anything I was a little disappointed with our energy level,” said Sumlin, who then sagged his shoulders. “When I turned the music off, they went like this.”

A few of the standouts Saturday were Showers, receivers Nate Askew, LeKendrick Williams, Malcome Kennedy and Mike Evans, safety Toney Hurd (INT returned for short TD on Manziel), linebacker Donnie Baggs, defensive end Caleb Russell, punter Drew Kaser (70 yarder in air) and kicker Taylor Bertolet (49-yard field goal), among a handful of others. Running back Will Randolph left with an undisclosed leg injury.

“I was personally glad to be back in (Kyle),” said Sumlin, a former A&M offensive coordinator under R.C. Slocum a decade ago. “This is a great place.”

Saturday marked the eighth of 15 practices this spring, and Sumlin is holding his “Friday Night Lights” scrimmage at 8 p.m. on (you guessed it) Friday at Kyle – the next time fans can check out the Aggies in person. The Maroon & White game is 1 p.m. on April 28, and the Aggies kickoff their season on Aug. 30 against Louisiana Tech in Shreveport, La.